Avondale Estates’ gorgeous old trees drew Megan Martin to the community, so it’s only fitting that she fills her home with trees during the holidays. Eight decorated trees are displayed throughout the modern prairie-style home, which is on the Dec. 10 Avondale Estates Christmas Tour of Homes. They range from a tree with traditional burgundy and gold ornaments to others with themes...

If you're like me, this time of year brings the yearning for upholding or creating family traditions such as building a holiday gingerbread house, but the reality is that there's only so much time in a day. Most of us were already burning our candles from both ends before they turned red and started smelling of spice and apples. Now we're just burned out. Take a breath. You’ve got options. My...

For each $100 gift card purchased, guests will receive an extra $20 at One Sushi + as well as other restaurants this holiday
season. Photo credit: Tori Allen PR. Did you make your list and check it twice? For last minute gifts, consider gift cards from the following 20 metro Atlanta restaurants. With slew of bonus dollar deals,
each will be a gift of something good to eat...

The holidays bring out the baking gene in most of us, no matter how latent it may be during the rest of the year. We get out cartons of eggs, sticks of butter, boxes of sugar from light brown to dark and roll up our sleeves to start baking. Now imagine spending all day, every day, surrounded by sugar, flour, butter, chocolate and dozens of jars of edible glitter. That’s the life of Joy Jessup...

From the menu … Suzy Siu’s Baos, Krog Street Market, 99 Krog St., Atlanta; 404-996-6504. Interestingly, although these are called turnip cakes, they’re actually radish cakes. ﻿Courtney Graham of Suzy Siu’s sent the recipe and told us﻿, “We actually use daikon which is a Chinese radish very similar to turnips. You can use hakurei and/or regular turnips...

Mark Pendergrast, “City on the Verge: Metro Atlanta and the Fight for America’s Urban Future.” Atlanta author Pendergrast (“For God, Country & Coca-Cola”) presents a deeply researched, multi-faceted history of the biggest city in America’s Southeast, using the Beltline saga to explore issues of race, education, public health, transportation, business, philanthropy...

The thought has probably crossed your mind: someday I'll spend New Year's Eve at Times Square in New York City. You'll be part of that massive crowd as the whole country watches and counts down to the moment the crystal ball drops. With your friends or significant other, you'll toast the New Year with champagne and, just maybe, one of those TV cameras will take notice and your faces will flash...

Made for watching by the roaring fire, cocoa in hand, slippers on feet, the delightful, wintry scenes of Hallmark Channel holiday movies are not typically fit for Southern settings. It only makes sense: how are you going to have the Christmas Festival of Ice and similar “Winter Wonderland” themes set in Charlotte, or Atlanta or Rocky Top, Tennessee? What's surprising is that...

Since food and fitness go well together, Life Time Fitness will host a special breakfast with Santa featuring healthy options.
Photo credit: M Squared PR. Bingo, Santa, games and more at Krog Street Market. Four-course beer dinner. There are several fun, food events happening
in metro Atlanta, so add one or all four of the following activities to your calendar. Be prepared...

Atlanta is the place to be for must-see Kwanzaa celebrations. In high anticipation of the cultural holiday, events are popping up around the city well before Kwanzaa, which is observed from Dec. 26 (Umoja) - Jan. 1 (Imani). If you're wondering what Kwanzaa is all about, it's a secular holiday that draws from various African cultures. From film screenings to dance shows, events rich with heritage...

Crime books are among the most popular genres out there. True crime. Legal fiction. Courtroom thrillers. Police procedurals. They fly off the shelves. We asked the leaders in metro-Atlanta law enforcement as well as some of the region’s top criminal defense attorneys to name their favorites. They live these stories every day. What books get it right? Which ones inspire them? Here — in...

Jim Meehan knows a thing or two about drinks. A beverage professional for nearly 20 years, he’s an acclaimed bartender, journalist and the author of “The PDT Cocktail Book” and 2017 guide “Meehan’s Bartender Manual” (Ten Speed Press, $40). Meehan visits Atlanta Dec. 18 for a dinner at Linton Hopkins’ new steakhouse C. Ellet’s that will see the drink...

Bake and dish it in the is casserole dish, which is available at Southern Kitchen. Photo credit: Caren West PR. ’Tis the season to give great gifts. This Christmas, present bakers with a casserole dish, enroll them in a croissant-making class or purchase something they can
use like a recipe book. Some of the following five gifts are local, so you can go get them now (and browse for...

Angi Sago, design center director for Traton Homes, first noticed the trend about 10 years ago. And kitchen islands have never been the same. The transformation came with the introduction of pendant lighting, those sleek, hanging fixtures that illuminate not just kitchens anymore but almost any room in the house. “Back then, they were super basic, not at all to the extent we have now,&rdquo...

A Cinnabon six-pack could get you free sandwiches for a year. Photo credit: Allison + Partners. Today is a great day for a six-pack. Schlotzsky’s
, a chain restaurant that offers sandwiches, Cinnabons, pizzas and more, is celebrating guest appreciation day by offering
one free small Original Sandwich each week for a year to the first 100 people who purchase a Cinnabon...

Only Santa can take reindeer-powered flights at Christmas; everyone else taking to the skies must rely on plane travel. Whether you're flying home for the holidays or heading on a holiday getaway, Christmas airfare deals are probably high on your wish list.To find Christmas airfare deals, refer to KAYAK's 2017 Holiday Hacker Guide and take advice from travel experts. Here are the top...

When you're looking to warm up, these cold-weather comfort food dishes and drinks around Atlanta will keep away the chill. Ration & Dram's Chicken & Dumplings is made from scratch using Darby Farms chicken, Southern Swiss Dairy milk made into cream and fluffy biscuit dumplings. The restaurant promises the dish "will make you feel like you're at your grandmother's house." 130 Arizona...

Photo courtesy of The Fresh Market Between gift shopping and holiday parties, it can be difficult to find time to cook the perfect Christmas dinner. Let the
professionals take something off your plate — or, more accurately, put something on your plate — and handle the main course.
Here are five places to buy Christmas ham in Atlanta this holiday season. The...

The temperatures are expected to fall in the metro Atlanta area. And while we bundle up our human members of the family to stay safe and warm, you have to also remember the four-footed fur babies. » Atlanta weather: Forecast, news and updates The ASPCA has released tips for keeping your pets safe during the winter months. 1. Keep your home humidified and dry your pet with a towel...

The weather and time change have brought the holiday season closer into the horizon. While the holidays are a great way to spend time with family and friends, it's easy to forget about spending time with that special someone. There are tons of ways to warm up to your sweetie all winter long. Here are eight magical winter date ideas for those looking for a little romance and fun: If you're willing...

Medical examiners in Las Vegas have determined that comic Ralphie May's death was from high blood pressure and heart disease. Clark County Coroner John Fudenberg (FYOU'-den-berg) told The Associated Press on Wednesday the round-faced comedian whose body was found Oct. 6 at a home in Las Vegas died of heart failure due to hypertensive cardiovascular disease. The death was ruled natural. May was 45...

Sprinkle magic into holiday baking and more with a three-piece sugar set. Photo credit: Beautiful Briny Sea. As a kid, cooking was fun. There was no better feeling than being able to assist my mother, grandmother or great-grandmother
in the kitchen. It’s the reason I love to bake today—and why any and everything that needs to be cooked in the oven falls
under my...

Free boneless wings all day at Wing Zone in Atlanta. Photo credit: No Limit Agency. Wing Zone
is giving away five free boneless wings at all U.S. locations including the restaurant on the campus of Georgia Tech today. The
company is highlighting their new Korean Q flavor, but also raising money for the
Ben Abercrombie Fund hosted by the family&rsquo...

Are you too busy to read? I often feel that my job — and the busyness of life in general — gets in between me and the primary reason I got so deeply into the kitchen in the first place: books. There is so much food writing to consume these days. And it feels like Christmas every day as new titles are shoved into my mail cubby at the office. Oh, it’s fun to rip open two, three and...

One of the fun things about visiting your local farmers market is the chance to scout the tables for new and interesting vegetables. Farmers know some of their customers are just browsing, hoping something will catch their eye and inspire a delicious dinner. Alex Rilko of Front Field Farm in Winterville, just east of Athens, was looking for something different for his stand when he ran across a listing...

Do you read the back label on a wine bottle, either before you buy it or while you’re drinking its contents? It may or may not contain a wealth of information aside from the ubiquitous government warnings. There’s often marketing hype, of course, a sentence or two about the winemaker’s passion and attachment to the land. Yawn. You may also find chemical analysis, such as the pH balance...

From the menu… Well-Bred Bakery & Cafe, 6 Boston Way, Asheville, N.C. 828-774-5307. wellbredbakery.com Laura Bogard, Well-Bred Bakery’s general manager, sent us the recipe for these delicious cookies and the photo that shows them temptingly arrayed in the bakery’s display case along with their shortbread and “monster” cookies. Drop in to the bakery and sample these...

Want to ruin a good thing? Just write a best-selling book strongly implying that people who eat it are unmanly. Quiche was widely enjoyed in America in the 1970s, until Bruce Feirstein wrecked it for everyone when he wrote the best-selling book “Real Men Don’t Eat Quiche.” It was a great title, but it had a profound effect. Quiche sales dropped precipitously as men everywhere immediately...

Here is the thing to keep in mind about the depressing song, which is a category of craft unto itself: Some are absolute garbage and some are actually really good songs. For 33 years (hey, it’s the age of Christ now! Mazel tov, terrible song!), this emotional tire fire has animated not just the Scroogiest loathing of the most ebullient holiday enthusiast, but also a not-inconsiderable amount...

This year, start a new tradition: no cooking on Christmas. Perhaps you shopped until you dropped, decked your house with holiday ornaments, wrapped lots of presents and cooked for the annual office potluck party. If that’s you, you’ve got options. The following nine restaurants will be open for brunch and/or dinner Dec. 25, so you and your family and friends can eat,...

For a good time, dine with Santa, sign up for a culinary class or build an edible home in a gingerbread-making workshop. Sure, your kids may want to leave a plate of cookies and glass of milk on the kitchen counter for Santa, but the milk may spoil and you may be tempted to eat the cookies. Instead, try one of the many breakfast with Santa options. Burgeoning little chefs will enjoy an international...

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, and the Bennet sisters are gathering at Pemberley to celebrate. Novelist Jane Austen’s darlings are all married and taking their places among the upper echelons of society — except middle sister Mary (Amelia Fischer). Bookish and high-strung, Mary would rather spend her time mastering a Beethoven concerto than swooning over a man. But...

It's time to deck the halls with boughs of holly, and adorn your table with delicious holiday foods. Serve up these memorable side dishes that will leave your family going back for seconds. They require very little experience or time, so you can focus on the rest of the Christmas party prep. These effortless collard greens, courtesy of Bon Appétit, require very little preparation. Time...

Recognize this Christmas scenario from Simply Family Finance blogger Chris Tecmire? "Think about it," he wrote. "Instead of simply celebrating with our families on December 25th, we have turned Christmas into a month-long whirlwind of work parties, gift exchanges and credit card stuffing trips to the mall. It has become a laundry list of to-dos instead of a time of celebration...

Opt for the special three-course dinner or a menu fave like this braised cod at il Giallo Osteria & Bar. Photo credit:
The Rosen Group. Have yourself a merry little Christmas Eve dinner with family and friends at the following four restaurants. Menus items will
be available on Sunday, Dec. 24. Ellet’s Steakhouse:
Start a new Christmas Eve...

Wahoo! Grill will host its annual breakfast with Santa on Dec. 9. Photo credit: Phase 3: Marketing and Communications. Free bacon today and tomorrow. Breakfast with Santa events. There are several fun, food events happening in Atlanta, so add
one or all four of the following activities to your calendar. Be prepared to eat, drink and have a grand ole time. Dec. 5 – 6: Spread cheer...

As someone who is stridently pro-vegetable, I find it relatively easy to eat healthfully 11 months of the year. But December, ah, December is 31 days of my own epicurean Rumspringa. Toothpicks pass as cutlery. Homemade ricotta gives way to Ro-Tel dip. Saturated fat bombs? Yes, please — and I’ll take some extra for the road, thanks. So what protects my arteries, and my waistline, from sustaining...

Kristine Necessary Loveless remembers the moment she fell in love with ballet. Securing last-minute tickets, she and her family sat in one of the top rows of the Fox Theatre and watched Atlanta Ballet’s lush production of “The Nutcracker” unfold under the theater’s starry sky. Captivated by it all — from the boisterous Trepak dancers to the sparkling Dew Drop Fairy &mdash...

During the Christmas season, it's way too easy to eat, drink and merry your way to holiday weight gain while visiting with loved ones. A little puff pastry here, some spinach dip there - before you know it, you've overindulged. But it doesn't have to be that way. When it comes to maintaining your weight during the holidays, it's all about balance. Here are a few top tips to help you keep seasonal...

Give a collection of salts and seasonings blended by Kevin Gillespie this holiday. Photo credit: Red Beard Merchandise. There’s an old proverb that goes something like this: Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish you
feed him for a lifetime. This Christmas, give novice cooks lifetime gifts. If they want to learn to cook, send them to culinary class where...

As the daughter of Atlanta designer, Clary Bosbyshell often accompanied her mother on trips to antique markets, showrooms and art galleries. While the mother-daughter team often work together, Bosbyshell has carved out her own smart style. See some of her work in the “Home for the Holidays Showhouse,” open now through Dec. 10. Designer & background: An Atlanta native, Bosbyshell graduated...

In 1963, Bill Bartholomay, head of a consortium that owned the Milwaukee Braves, began petitioning Major League Baseball to move the Braves to Atlanta. But MLB wondered how welcoming Atlanta would be to a team with black ballplayers. Bartholomay sat before a committee of owners and was confronted by questions that referenced the lineaments of the Jim Crow South: separate water fountains for blacks...

Young-adult author Adam Silvera didn’t read a book about a queer teen until he was 19. It was Cassandra Clare’s “City of Bones,” and the fantasy novel surprised him. “The only time I ever expected to see a book with queer characters was in a coming-out story,” he explained. “It was a happy surprise. And I bought way more into the romance between a demon hunter...

The wraparound front porch captivated Leon Kouters and Marty Simpson when they were searching for their next home in Atlanta’s historic Grant Park neighborhood. And it still does when they relax there and gaze at the park. “The view from the front is absolutely gorgeous. That’s probably our most favorite room and almost sold us immediately on the home,” Kouters said. &ldquo...

As cold and flu season approaches, we all get a little bit more conscious about germs. Maybe you wash your hands more often or avoid that colleague sneezing in the corner cubicle. Despite your best efforts, however, you're almost certainly going to come into contact with bacteria on a daily basis. Even some of the most mundane items you touch regularly are infested with bacteria and germs. Sure, you...

Robert J. Farley, co-founder, with his wife, Anita Allen-Farley, of the Georgia Ensemble Theatre, died suddenly Thursday, according to his daughter, Laurel Farley Crowe. Crowe posted on her Facebook page Thursday: “It is with profound sadness that I share the news of the passing of my father, Robert J. Farley (Mr. Bob). His death this morning was sudden and unexpected. He was a beacon of...

I’ve heard people say that sometimes your brain will shut down just before traumatic experiences and you won’t remember anything that happened. That may be true, but it surely wasn’t the case for me. I remember every detail. I looked up and saw headlights. There was no time to react. The truck was moving too fast. I remember my body’s impact with the front of it. Swept and...

Robert J. Farley, co-founder, with his wife, Anita Allen-Farley, of the Georgia Ensemble Theatre, died suddenly Thursday, according to his daughter, Laurel Farley Crowe. Crowe posted on her Facebook page Thursday: “It is with profound sadness that I share the news of the passing of my father, Robert J. Farley (Mr. Bob). His death this morning was sudden and unexpected. He was a beacon...

Mercedes-Benz Stadium is host to Atlanta’s favorite teams− Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta United. Ever since the stadium opened in late August, fans have arrived with a winning appetite. To satiate that hunger, the 2 million-square-foot sports facility offers many ways to fill the belly and wet a whistle. AMB Sports & Entertainment Group, subsidiary of AMB Group comprised of the Atlanta...

Sooner or later, serious music lovers are bound to make their way to the music-rich state of Tennessee. A musical journey through the Volunteer State provides an in-depth look at more than a century of history that has been captured in iconic tourist attractions that represent a range of genres, so whether you are Elvis Presley’s biggest fan or always singing along to the latest country hits...

Behold the steak list. You will rarely see one as detailed as that on offer at C. Ellet’s. Depending on the night, the menu may offer a choice between an 18-ounce, 35-day dry-aged bone-in Kansas City strip cut from Angus cattle raised in Texas and distributed by Allen Brothers, a 7-ounce Coulotte from Tajima cattle raised in Washington state and distributed by Mishima, an 8-ounce Angus hanger...

There is extraordinary magic that happens when combining two delicacies. Even though caviar is not as exclusive as it once was, it is celebratory. Add Champagne for the embodiment of luxury. For centuries, the two have been symbols of luxury and rarity. Sparkling wine can be called “Champagne” only if it is produced in the region of Champagne, about 45 minutes from Paris. Similarly, lightly...

When it comes to chicken, some like it hot. Prince’s Hot Chicken has been serving fried chicken with a crunchy, cayenne pepper crust for 60 years. The original location is tucked away in a back street, but those determined to get their fix always manage to find it. People from all walks of life munch fried chicken at this no-frills eatery: old timers that have been customers for decades, college...

Some years ago, this much-renovated structure on a stretch of Juniper known for its stately homes was a place called Spice. Just recently, it was Time Restaurant & Lounge. In between and perhaps most notably, it was Straits Atlanta, a Singaporean-influenced restaurant where Grammy-winning rapper Ludacris and his team served kung pao lollipops and a $50 margarita. (Ludacris flew the coop to open&nbsp...

Taking a bad spill on the runway may be a model's worst nightmare - and it's only amplified when it might be broadcast to millions on TV. Chinese model Ming Xi found herself in that scenario last week when she slipped and fell during the 2017 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, which taped in Shanghai. On Tuesday night, CBS aired the telecast, and some thought the network might edit out Xi's spill. &quot...

Get lunch for $10 in Midtown on weekdays at Al Forno’s. Photo credit: Blue Hominy PR. Swing by recently opened
Al Forno’s
for a lunch deal featuring a half-medium pizza and side salad for $10 from
11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. weekdays. The menu consists of over a dozen pizzas including margarita, meatball, cherry tomatoes and squash...

From the menu… Callie’s Hot Little Biscuits, 1004 Virginia Avenue NE, Atlanta. 404-330-8285. calliesbiscuits.com Some persnickety friends and I met recently for an early breakfast at Callie’s Hot Little Biscuits in the Virginia-Highland area. To our delight, we found the biscuits to be absolutely, melt in your mouth, delicious! I especially liked the filling for the cinnamon...

﻿From the cult of the Instant Pot﻿, to ﻿the return of the slow cooker﻿, and the sudden popularity of meal kits, the passion for quick, easy, and set it and forget it dinners just keeps growing. That’s certainly being reflected in a new wave of recipes and cookbooks aimed at putting real food on the table in the most efficient ways. Of course, the holidays aren&rsquo...

Looking for a holiday-themed Southeastern getaway with glowing appeal? Light displays string across the region, plugging in for all ages to enjoy. Multicolored wattage, often designed in seasonal shapes from candy canes to dreidels, can offer more celebratory spirit than spiked eggnog. Ponder the following suggestions when plotting a holly jolly vacation or a pit stop while road tripping...

Enjoy a hands-on cooking class at Vino Venue in Dunwoody. Photo courtesy of Vino Venue. With the holiday season in full swing, you might be in need of some new culinary inspiration for the forthcoming parties,
gatherings and special meals in the weeks ahead. Whether you’re an expert cook or a novice in the kitchen, these cooking classes
scattered across metro-Atlanta&rsquo...

Hugh Acheson Check out a slow cooking demonstration. Bring a toy, get a drink. There are several fun, food events happening in Atlanta,
so add one or all four of the following activities to your calendar. Be prepared to eat, drink and have a grand ole time. Tuesday, Nov. 28: Do good. Visit any
Farm Burger
location today to participate in&nbsp...

The novelist John Knowles (1926-2001) attended Phillips Exeter and Yale, and is the author of “A Separate Peace,” the quintessential American prep school novel. But he was born in West Virginia. Sometimes his fiction was set there. In his novel “A Vein of Riches” (1978), Knowles described the wealthy, exploitative, coal mine-owning Catherwood family. Young Lyle Catherwood wanted...

There are many good reasons to pick up Mike Lowery’s new book and devour it like a haggis ice cream cone from Scotland or a hunk of the world’s most expensive cheese that happens to be made from donkey milk. Sure, it’s cool learning that such, uh, delicacies exist. Or that there’s someone out there who actually ran a 26.2-mile marathon while knitting a 12-foot-long scarf. Or...

It's cold outside, and your soul is searching for the perfect soups in town. This week's Best of Atlanta poll is on the hunt for your favorite bowl of comfort. Some of the most delicious foods are served hot. Case in point: macaroni and cheese. Here's the official list of the best mac 'n cheese in town. Warm up by lighting a fire in your mouth at one of these Indian restaurants...

Liz Whitehurst dabbled in several careers before she ended up here, crating fistfuls of fresh-cut arugula in the early-November chill. The hours were better at her nonprofit jobs. So were the benefits. But two years ago, the 32-year-old Whitehurst - who graduated from a liberal arts college and grew up in the Chicago suburbs - abandoned Washington, D.C., for this three-acre farm in Upper Marlboro...

There’s a number of ways to satisfy the nostalgia of yesteryear while keeping your entire home’s decor fresh and modern this holiday season. “We’re seeing this kind of ‘whole home’ aspect to decorating,” said Jule Eller, style and trend director for Lowe’s. “It’s ‘beyond the mantel,’ we like to call it. So people are really taking...

During the summer of 2013, Joe Biden’s oldest son, Beau, learned he had a glioblastoma, an especially ferocious and pitiless type of brain tumor. Joe Biden told almost no one. His grief did not spill into open view. But eventually, the world came to know. Beau Biden — Iraq War veteran, former attorney general of the state of Delaware — died on May 30, 2015. He was 46. Most civilians...

Get $5 food deals at Taverna weekdays. Photo credit: Taverna. Be sure to treat yourself to something yummy after shopping for friends and family this Friday. Taverna
, located in Buckhead, just launched a happy hour special featuring $5 fritto misto (calamari, shrimp, shallots, zucchini
and carrots with spicy tomato aioli), bruschetta and variety of pizzas&nbsp...

Each year, Thanksgiving comes around with with the giddy anticipation of devoruing comfort food and spending some QT with loved ones, which reminds you just what what you are thankful for the most. The rich, deep history of this centuries-old tradition is woven into the United States' cultural fabric, yet, there are still many aspects of the holiday that most Americans don’t know. The holiday...

Although the turkey will surely take center stage at your Thanksgiving table, a few unforgettable side dishes can't hurt. These simple Thanksgiving sides won't take very much time or effort to pull together, but look (and taste) like a million bucks. This Thanksgiving Day, give your family a feast they won't forget by including a few of these easy-to-make dishes to accompany the big star. Homemade...

Lamp shades, vintage pennants and antiques from across the globe spark Kim Doherty’s creativity during the holiday season. “I don’t think that my Christmas has ever been the same every year,” she said. “I like things changing and moving and evolving.” From the dressed-up porches to the colorful chicken coop, Doherty lets loose her vivid design imagination and hones...

Atlanta is a big enough town that finding a list of a dozen bars offering life-sized jenga and another dozen where bocce ball is close to club sport is easy to do. Yet, if you wanted to make a list of bars to listen to the blues — slim pickings. That may have something to do with shifting generational music tastes. There just aren't many hot new blues acts (exceptions: Valerie June,&nbsp...

Like leaves falling from the sky, this season brings an usually strong lineup of cookbooks. With holiday gift-giving in mind, here’s a look at some of the most coveted titles of fall and winter. AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL. The idea of drawing a culinary map from sea to shining sea is hardly a new one. Still, you have to be impressed by the reams of research that must have gone into Gabrielle Langholtz&rsquo...

Mellow out before the mayhem of Thanksgiving at Edgar’s Proof and Provision. Photo credit: Green Olive Media. Start new traditions with
friendsgivings events. Dance the night (and calories) away at in-town parties. There are several fun, food events happening in Atlanta,
so add one or all four of the following activities to your calendar. Be prepared to eat, drink...

One night this summer, I sat on the patio of Oak Brewpub with a friend, talking and sipping on beer late into the night. We watched as a handful of highly competitive sportsmen tried to win round after round of cornhole. We nibbled on a few snacks and basked in that warm night summer air. We didn’t talk much about the beer or the food, though we had a decent IPA or two and some bites of smoked...

There’s something magical about watching as a bartender pulls back a tap handle and carefully guides a bubbly draft on its journey from the keg to your glass. For the longest time, that time-honored ritual was repeated with special attention at pubs and beer bars, where the “perfect pint” was the ultimate goal of the pour. But, nowadays, those gushing sounds and fresh flavors can...

From the menu… The National, 232 W. Hancock Ave., Athens. 706-549-3450. thenationalrestaurant.com A friend and I made the trip from Atlanta to Athens to shop at Plantapalooza at the Trial Gardens at the University of Georgia and to have lunch at The National. The “Power Lunch” was delicious. Is it possible they’ll share the recipe for the sweet potato and chickpea salad...

You expect ginger to be growing in tropical climates like Hawaii and Southeast Asia. And for many years, any ginger you could buy here was from those locations. But in the past dozen or so years, farmers in metro Atlanta have been growing ginger, first as an experimental crop and now, with more years of experience, as a standard part of their farm rotation. Vicky Fry of Fry Farm in the north Walton...

Sitting in a room full of wine barrels, winemakers and sommeliers seemed like a dream come true until such terms as “sub-appellations,” “malolactic fermentation” and “diurnal fluctuation” started being bandied about with abandon. It was like I had landed on an island where the natives speak a different language, and I was just hoping to nod my head at the correct...

Rafi Kohan, “The Arena” and Gary Belsky, “Up Your Game.” In a fascinating, addictive look at the places we go to yell our lungs out, Sportswriter Kohan crisscrosses the country, bringing the modern American sports stadium to life. Belsky, the former editor-in-chief of ESPN The Magazine, offers the ultimate sports handbook: a compendium of the tricks, techniques, and unwritten...

In a post-truth America, poet Kevin Young, most recently author of “Blue Laws: Selected and Uncollected Poems 1995-2015,” assumes the daunting task of cataloguing America’s obsession with deception in his new nonfiction book, recently long-listed for the National Book Award, “Bunk: The Rise of Hoaxes, Humbug, Plagiarists, Phonies, Post-Facts, and Fake News.” The history...

Chris Erickson sought the wow factor when he renovated his 1928 home in Candler Park. He found it in an unexpected place: the garage. After Erickson and Kristin Tench Erickson, his wife, purchased the home in 2016, he took the crumbling structure that was a home for critters and redid the flooring and added custom-built cedar sliding barn doors. The changes maintained, and even, enhanced the character...